Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Tina Peters said she has raised enough money to pay for the recount she’s seeking from the Secretary of State’s office.

Peters continues to insist on a hand recount, which is not available under state election rules. Those rules dictate that recounts can only be done in the same manner as the original count, which in Colorado was done by machine tabulation.

In a news release Wednesday, Peters said she took to local and national media to address the public about her efforts and raised the $230,000 necessary for the recount. The amount for the recount has not yet been announced, although Peters attempted to seek a recount earlier this month. That recount carried a price tag of $236,179. 

Peters also noted the donations met the state campaign finance contribution limit of $1,200 per individual.

Peters is seeking a recount of her 14-percentage point loss to former Jeffco Clerk and Recorder Pam Anderson. Automatic recounts, which are paid for by the state, are triggered when the difference between the winning candidate and second-place candidate is 0.05% or less of the winning vote. 

As justification for a hand recount, Peters pointed to a hand recount done in Mesa County following the November 2021 election for a local school board race.

“It was done within 3 days and was more accurate than the machine count,” Peters said in the press release. “We have no reason to object  to the people’s request for a statewide hand count and the candidates who have standing.”

Peters also said that current Secretary of State Jena Griswold and GOP Secretary of State candidate Pam Anderson, who is not an elected official and has no role in statewide elections, should be “more than happy to do this. It will be suspicious to the people if Jena Griswold prevents the recount or adds NEW rules to the request.”

Peters was among nine GOP candidates who lost election races in the June 28 primary who are now seeking hand recounts of their races. The nine include state Rep. Ron Hanks of Canon City, three El Paso County candidates for the state legislature and four candidates for elected office in El Paso County.

Today, July 27, is the deadline for the next campaign finance reporting period. The contributions could show up as soon as Monday, the deadline for the next filing.

Peters’ campaign finance reports show she raised just over $215,000 for her primary race. 

The Secretary of State’s Office has not yet announced the costs of the recounts for the five candidates who are seeking them through the elections division.

Peters has not yet responded to questions on why she’s seeking a hand recount when they are not allowed under state election rules, and why she is calling on Anderson to take part in the recount.